Making Soy Votives

First of all, let me say the support I have gotten from all of you is very inspiring to me. I love helping people out, and your visits here have inspired me to continue my work! Sorry for the lack of pictures here... I really wanted to make this available to the public for all of you candle makers who are in a hurry for Christmas!

As you already know, the key to making quality soy candles is quality ingredients... mainly a good soy wax. In this project I have used KY Candle Wax Supply's votive blend. This is the same wax that is being used in our soy pillar project. You may use the container blend, but with more difficulty. I will explain this later.

Soy votives can be rather tricky, simply because we are going to use a mold. The same rule applies with other molded candles. Since this is the case, you should be able to follow this guide to making soy votives in other projects like tarts and floatives (floating soy candles).

I have to admit, the great thing about using soy wax (and other natural candle making waxes) is the ability to melt it in the microwave. This makes cleanup a minor undertaking!

To begin the project, the first thing we need is metal votive molds. You can find these at many online candle supply stores but you may want to check eBay. A lot of metal candle molds can be found on eBay at a pretty reasonable price. Stay away from the wick stems that come with many of the votive cups that are for sale out there.

Most of the metal votive cups you will find will measure in volume at roughly 2 ounces. For our project here, we will use 8 metal votive cups for our soy votives. This will require about 16 ounces (by volume) of melted soy wax.

After your wax is melted, add your color and fragrance. Once the wax is melted well, it is time to pour. There is a silicon spray that is available for metal candle molds. This spray is referred to as a releasant. Supposedly this makes it easier to get the votive, or other molded candle for that matter, out of the candle mold. I have found this to be fairly non-effective, but feel free to give it a try!

Once your soy wax is poured, it will start to set. This length of time depends on the room temperature and the temperature of your wax. Soon you will start to see a skin develop on the top of the soy votive. At this point we can wick the candle.

The available "tabbed" wicks are probably the easiest to use for your soy votives. These are generally about 2 1/2 to 3 inches long. If you buy them in bulk, you may have to flatten the tabs on the wicks to get them to stand properly after putting them into the votive cup. Also, some of these wick have been pre-dipped in wax which give them some rigidity. If you put the wick into the soy cup too soon, the wax will soften on the wick and cause the wick to fall (this is very irritating).

After the wicks are in the votive cup and centered, leave them alone... preferably overnight. This gives the soy votives time to setup. Once the votive is set up, it is time to release them from the votive cup. If you are using the soy votive blend, the votives will generally pop out of the mold with a slight tug from the wick. If you have chosen to use the soy container blend, you may have to put them in the freezer for a few minutes. Be careful... when soy wax is submitted to extremely cold temperatures, it has a tendency to crack. Avoid putting your votives in the freezer for extended periods of time.

Once the soy votive is released from the votive cup, it is always good to let the candle "cure" for a day or two, however if you are ready to burn one, feel free. When burning soy votives, make sure you use a tight fitting container, as soy wax does burn slightly different than paraffin wax.

Good luck with your soy votives,... and I would be happy to hear and success stories, or answer any questions you may have. Thanks again for your visit to soywaxcandles.org!